Comments on: Seeing Jewelry Consignment in a New Light

By: Catherine @ Shadow Dog Designs

Catherine @ Shadow Dog Designs — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 14:50:00 +0000

Very interesting article! I have had both excellent and not so good experiences with consignment, although, thank heavens, have never had a shop close down with my jewelry still in it. My favorites have been high end galleries where, yes, they took 50%, but because they knew their clients better, they set the prices, always much more than I would even would have thought about. I’d often get double or triple what I needed out of the piece. We moved two years ago and since I have a fairly heavy arts festival rotation and run an online studio, I haven’t really checked out places for consignment. Maybe it’s time I did. Thank you for your helpful insights.

By: Crystal Penton

Crystal Penton — Wed, 14 May 2014 15:32:04 +0000

Rita I truly appreciate your news letters your tips are just wonderful I was really encougage by all the good feed back on consignment I have had my jewelry in a beauty salon for about 3 yrs and love it my husband and I retired from our cleaning business a few yrs ago so having exprence with cleaning service we barter with the Owner by cleaning the mirrors in the shop every month for this she uses her credit card machine and provides a display for my jewelry sales and does not charge me I have done quite well with this arrangement again thank you so much for the tips they are so helpful

By: Deb Procter

Deb Procter — Sat, 26 Apr 2014 12:32:55 +0000

Very good article. I have a shop that takes all types of handcrafts & art on consignment, but am currently looking to consign some of my own Silvermoon Studio work to a few other shops far enough away to not be in competition with my own, of course.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Wed, 04 Sep 2013 10:56:33 +0000

I wrote a series of articles about consignment on my blog earlier this year. It was nice to get a fresh perspective though. Thanks. You can read my thoughts on the subject starting here…
jaspersgems.blogspot.ca/2013/04/selling-on-consignment-to-do-or-not-to.html

By: Rena Klingenberg

Rena Klingenberg — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 02:26:22 +0000

Thanks so much for everyone’s fantastic input here! And Joyce, so glad to hear this article popped into your email box right when you needed it! 🙂

By: Joyce

Joyce — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 01:55:40 +0000

Perfect timing! This e-mail with this article came just as I was emailing a friend about what to ask at my first meeting tomorrow with a local boutique owner! I love all this input! I have been selling jewelry for 12 years at shows and am just now working up the courage to branch out. Thanks everybody for the helpful hints!

By: Ann Wittman

Ann Wittman — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 23:47:17 +0000

I enjoyed the article about consignment. I have pieces in 3 stores-my hair salon, an upscale artisan boutique and an up and coming jewelry store specializing in anything “sea life” as well as fine jewelry! Each venue provides a different opportunity for my creative juices! We are learning what the market will bear and how to handle sales.
I was frustrated on how to keep track of my pieces so I now write an individual description on a carbonless sales receipt and the last 2 digits are placed on the tag of that item. When it sells we mark it sold and she gives me back my original when I get paid. I manage to pay for my hair appointments at the salon and I change the stock each time I get a haircut.
The hair salon charges me 30%, the boutique pays outright, and the store pays me what I ask and she doubles the price. It is definitly a learning experience and the most important is to rotate stock between them all.
I hope these comments are helpful.

By: Kristine

Kristine — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 14:23:17 +0000

I had some jewelry in one shop on consignment – luckily, I got my inventory out before they closed down. I would go in and check regularly on how stock was moving, and, puzzlingly, one certain pendant was always being displayed upside down. I would turn it right-side-up, and sure enough, next month I would find it upside down again. It wasn’t an ambiguous piece either.

By: Kim

Kim — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:10:12 +0000

I haven’t done consignment because I thought taking 50% was too much. Currently, I’m in the process of opening my own store. In addition to extended hours, as mentioned in the post. Please remember that the shop owner is paying *thousands* of dollars in rent per month.

By: Willi Glenn

Willi Glenn — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:23:59 +0000

I’ve had really bad experiences with consignment shops from theft of hundreds of dollars’ worth of merchandise that the shop owners felt they were not obligated to pay for to shops closing and owners disappearing with several shelves of my merchandise.

But before I start paying booth fees to sell new styles of jewelry, I want feedback from people other than friends and relatives. So I find small shops and get to know the owners. Then, when I feel I can trust them, we talk consignment. I may not sell as much working with small shops, but I don’t lose anything and employees are happy to gather feedback for me.

I also find that it’s easier to wholesale if I agree to exchange items that don’t sell quickly enough for new stock of the same price. Shop owners don’t always know what will sell in a particular location or they buy pieces they like that may not appeal to their clientele so they feel more comfortable in buying my products if they know they won’t be left with a pile of unsold items.

I sometimes help managers increase sales by giving a free pendant or bracelet to the first person who sells over ten peices of my jewelry. When I present the prize items to the salespeople, they always like to talk about their customers’ reaction to the jewelry. To me, that information is invaluable.

By: Felicia

Felicia — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 14:24:02 +0000

I have had good and bad consignment experiences. From having a shop close without ever getting my jewelry back to having all my pieces sell within a month. Now though I prefer wholesale only. I find that shop owners also like this. It keeps them from taking too much of my jewelry inventory, which means they will pick pieces more carefully, paying attention to what items match the things they sell, or picking pieces that seem to have the same theme. Wholesale has been great for me and I keep adding to the number of local shops that wish to carry my work!

By: Patricia C Vener

Patricia C Vener — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 03:59:21 +0000

Only one of my consignment opportunities was at all useful – a wonderful high end craft gallery in Maryland. But now that I’m in Connecticut, I can’t find any shops that are a good fit. Ones that I thought might be turn out to prefer cheap mass produced stuff – or they look down on bead weaving because they clearly lack the appreciation of my work as the art it is and without even looking equate it to the poorly made cheap stuff from China and India. Worse, the normal split up here seems to be 50% or more for the shop. That’s really not right at all. For 50% I should get an outright sale, not consignment. That’s keystoning, after all.

I haven’t figured out yet how to turn this around so I’ve given up on consignment for now. I’m still trying to work on getting exhibitions instead but have so far not succeeded.

By: Robin Showstack

Robin Showstack — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 01:53:07 +0000

I am going to revisit consigning again after reading your article.

Here in Massachusetts the stores take 50% and since I would wholesale at the same price I would rather that they buy me outright!

By: Ann Widner

Ann Widner — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 01:26:18 +0000

This is a great article, Laura! I really like how you compare consigning jewelry with investing. I never thought about it in that way!! I consign my photo jewelry in several shops, and I know I’m doing some things well, but others I need to work on. A lot of what I hear and read about artists and crafters consigning their work is not-too-positive. Thanks for reminding me that selling on consignment can be done successfully. That gives me hope that I’m on the right path!!

By: Natasha Burger

Natasha Burger — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:01:30 +0000

I have had my pieces on consignment with a permanent display at a local gift shop for the last 2 years. I love it! I have a written contract and stop by the shop at least monthly to update my inventory and chat with the shop owner. It has given me great exposure, the fun of a permanent display and incentive to create regular “theme” pieces to keep my display cohesive (ie birthstone of the month, Autumn Colors etc). You can see my consignment display if you go to my facebook page, as I post about it regularily there.

By: Ann Nolen

Ann Nolen — Sun, 14 Oct 2012 15:23:17 +0000

Thanks Laura,

Your article is food for thought! I only tried consignment once, and it was my old line of inventory so I discounted it quite a bit. I was guilty of visiting the shop only every two months or so, and showed up one day and found the shop closed. Not a big financial loss, but I was still very wary going forward.

Currently I have my 1st line of jewelry in only one store, and they purchase my items rather than consignment. I have offered to exchange any inventory at any time, hoping to keep my jewelry off the clearance rack down the road.

I like letting them do the selling for me, and have been thinking of finding a second store to sell with. I am not sure what placement is too close. I don’t want to damage this business arrangement, so would love to know what you think. I live in a town of 150,000, so wondered if I should go out of the neighborhood, to another city, or outside my county area to find another shop to carry my jewelry.

What has been your experience?